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HAGATNA, Guam (Jan. 6) – The decision several years ago by government of Guam officials to spend money meant for the Retirement Fund on other operational costs was not only wrong, it was illegal.

These choices resulted in millions of dollars of debt owed by Guam Memorial Hospital and the school system to the Retirement Fund. That led to a decision by Retirement Fund officials to cease allowing employees from those agencies to retire. That, in turn, led to a law that allowed the employees to retire, but only after a complicated process that results in delay. There still are employees qualified to retire who can't yet do so.

All these years, the elected officials in the governor's office and the Legislature have ignored the plight of these employees by not taking substantive action to repay the debt. Instead, they plan to use a proposed bond, which has been delayed by legal challenges and which might not even be approved, to...

RAROTONGA, Cook Islands (Dec. 10) – Notice how quiet is this Holiday Season? We seem a society that’s been lobotomized, somehow getting through each day like zombies – those of us that have not emigrated, that is. Why is that?

Government at long last agreed to abolish levy, but a few weeks later they flip-flopped, "Instead, we will phase the levies out." Really? That’s what they said ten years ago.

A Cabinet Minister is found guilty of misappropriating public funds and attempting a cover up, however he has appealed and remains on the public payroll.

The Ministry of Works advertises for supplies of domestic housing materials for those left homeless after a cyclone ravaged Pukapuka – 11 months after the cyclone!

A former Minister is caught red-handed selling DVD rip-offs of King Kong, but a Parliament that rarely is in session has never up-dated our copyright laws to...

MAJURO, Marshall Islands (Marianas Variety, Jan. 9) — The Marshall Islands government has agreed to a five-year, US$25 million funding plan to totally rebuild the campus of the College of the Marshall Islands in Majuro.

President Kessai Note announced Thursday that the funding agreement was approved by Cabinet late last week.

The old and deteriorating facilities at the College of the Marshall Islands are a major problem for its United States accreditation, which is up for review late next week by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. The college has been on the brink of losing its accreditation for the past year, as the Western Association of Schools and College’s put the local college into a "show cause" status, the final stage before a school loses its accreditation. More than $3 million in U.S. federal funding — about half of the college’s annual budget — depends on accreditation.

PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea (The National, Jan. 6) – The Chinese company developing the PGK2 billion [US$685 million] Ramu Nickel/Colbalt Project in Papua New Guinea’s Madang province has been given a 10-year tax holiday by the Government.

The NEC gave the tax holiday for the Metallurgical and Construction Corporation (MCC) of China because there was lack of interest in the project, according to industry sources.

[PIR editor’s note: According to its website, China Metallurgical Construction (Group) Corporation is a conglomerate under the authority of the Chinese central government with total assets of RMB 32 billion yuan (US$3.9 billion), more than 56,000 employees about 70 fully owned or controlled subsidiaries.]

NEC documents obtained by The National say: "The Council (NEC) approved 10 years tax holiday from the day of production of the first saleable product from the mine, and that depreciation on assets to be simultaneously...

PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea (PNG Post-Courier, Jan. 6) – Criminal activities in the Finschhafen District of Papua New Guinea’s Morobe Province are likely to force the closure of a community school this year.

The Merikeo Community School in the Kotte Local Level Government Council says it is likely to suspend classes, leaving more than 200 children from the two big villages of Merikeo and Zafireo without classes.

A community leader yesterday told the Post-Courier the school had recently been targeted by criminals for raids. Teachers and school children had been victims of the raids.

"It’s uncontrollable. Teachers and children have been victimised by criminals," he said.

The local leader said the criminals were organised and operated in a "Mafia" gang style. "The (gang) leader orders his followers to raid the school. They enter the school and demand money from teachers. In one instance, they abducted a girl from a class and raped her. It’s evil,’’ he...

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (RNZI, Jan. 6) – The Australian government says there is no evidence to suggest the populations Pacific Islands are in any imminent danger of being displaced by rising sea levels.

The Federal Labor Party released a policy paper this week, calling on the government to help internal relocation efforts in affected countries, and also accept so-called climate change refugees. But the environment minister, Ian Campbell, says the suggestion is absurd.

Labor said a number of island states, including Tuvalu, Kiribati, Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu were losing land, fresh water supplies and food sources, as a result of rising sea levels.

But a spokesman for the foreign minister, Alexander Downer, says it’s too early to provide an accurate assessment of regional trends.

The spokesman says it’s important to recognise that islands, as he puts it, "rise and fall in height as a result of geological pressure".

SAIPAN, CNMI (Saipan Tribune, Jan. 9) – Bishop Tomas A. Camacho offered a message of hope yesterday during a Mass for the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands’ new set of elected leaders.

Gov.-elect Benigno R. Fitial and Lt. Gov.-elect Timothy P. Villagomez, along with elected officials Commonwealth-wide, attended the Mass with their families.

Camacho, who presided at the inaugural Mass, said the new administration could overcome the CNMI's problems by transcending political differences and taking guidance from religion.

"My dear honorable ladies and gentlemen: The greatest anxiety that we all share at this point in time is the worsening economy. But I dare say, do not be afraid. If worse comes to worse-which I doubt-I firmly believe that you can handle it," Camacho said in his homily.

He noted that the islands had been through worse times, when the all five districts of the then Trust Territory government had an annual...

HAGATNA, Guam (Marianas Variety,Jan. 9) – The continuing military buildup on Guam and the impending relocation of 7,000 Marines from Okinawa is expected to result in a construction boom and increased tourism that would generate hundreds of jobs, but the island’s labor pool is not big enough to fill in these positions.

With a limited number of skilled workers on Guam, how will the construction and tourism industries be able to handle the new projects?

The labor shortage issue will be tackled by the Legislature’s committee on finance, taxation and commerce in a roundtable discussion scheduled for Jan. 11.

The committee chairman, Sen. Eddie B. Calvo, R-Maite, has invited representatives from various sectors such as labor, education and human resource organizations to discuss Guam’s current efforts to address the shortage of skilled workers on island.

"Discussions at the roundtable meeting will be focused on encouraging the...

"For now, one of things that I want to do is teach at the college and share some of the experiences I had as a legislator, as Washington representative and as governor," he told Variety. "Like everything else in life, there are ups and downs. Life is a rollercoaster. We win some and we lose some and we move forward."

Babauta, who won by a landslide in the 2001 elections, finished third in November, garnering only 26 percent of the votes cast.

He said he has already made arrangements with NMC President Tony V. Deleon Guerrero.

"I’ve visited and talked to the (college) president about teaching and he was very supportive," Babauta said. "We’re looking at probably this summer since the spring semester was already planned a...

Pacific Islands Report is a nonprofit news publication of the Pacific Islands Development Program at the East-West Center in Honolulu, Hawai‘i. Offered as a free service to readers, PIR provides an edited digest of news, commentary and analysis from across the Pacific Islands region, Monday - Friday.